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Monday, July 7, 2008

Blame it on the toast

Fourth of July had a strange beginning for me this year. I was having my usual toast with cream cheese, strawberry jam and ham for breakfast —I know, a weird combination— when I suddenly noticed something odd under my jaw. I went to look myself on the mirror. My face was not very symmetrical. The left side, right under my jaw, was swollen and felt hard. Did I wake up with this? Was it the toast? I'm usually very calm when it comes to medical things. I always think everything is going to be alright. But I must confess I had a moment of panic. I even went online to do some research. Michelle said, just go to the walk-in clinic. So that's what I did.

It was closer to 11 a.m. when I got there. I checked in, filled forms, you know the drill. Two-hour wait, they said. Oh, well. On the upside, I came well equipped with my sketching gear, so I sat and drew the nice view from the waiting room. Soon after I started writing at the top of the pages they called my name.

I went in, waited some more and the doctor showed up. By then my face had shrunk almost to normal. I felt a little stupid. What am I going to say. The toast did it?

As it turned out, it probably did. The doctor said that with some foods, especially tart flavors, the salivary glands have to work full steam and if some tiny crystal stones that usually form inside block the exit, the gland reacts by hardening and swelling. After a few hours, they go back to normal.

Another slice of life that i enjoyed reading about -- despite the scare! I liked your hand-written narrative. Not to be too nosey, but what is your motivation for writing it in English in your sketchbook? I write mostly in English myself and am often wondering where that choice stems from in other people. Glad to hear todo esta bien.

@wagonized, funny you ask about the English... i started writing in English in my notebooks in college back in Spain as a way to improve my proficiency, now my writing usually comes out in English first more often than not. i usually joke with my wife that after ten years here i'm slowly losing all my 'hispanicity'. i even thought about dropping the Spanish from the blog, but she insisted I keep it, so the Spanish readers of the blog can thank Michelle for that :)

Glad it is the toast! Beautiful sketch work.Wonderful view from the doctors office.

Vaya con Dios.

Sorry, just had high school Spanish.I met the sister of a woman that came to U.S.A.as a WWII War Bride. She never got to go back to Germany. Her children 3, 2 boys and a girl were small when she died. I located her Resting place in the U.S. and put Her relatives in Contact with the German Relatives. In one of the letters I was allowed to see, She wrote that reading Germany was becoming harder every year. She was planning a trip home with Her Children when she became ill.